West Point set the early tone, scoring three runs in each of the first two innings and adding five more in the top of the fifth in an 11-1 victory Thursday afternoon in the opening round of the 9-10-11 baseball state tournament at the Selinsgrove Little League.
“We took one on the chin today,” Back Mountain manager Jerry Brodginski said in a phone interview following the game. “It was just an off day for us. That’s Little League baseball, they are 11-year-old kids. The game got away quickly. We had some defensive errors. I think the nerves may have gotten to them a little bit.”
The errors were uncharacteristic for the Back Mountain team that played nearly flawless baseball through the District 31 and Section 5 tournaments to earn the bid to the state tournament and face West Point.
Back Mountain was held without a hit, but had three batters reach base via a walk and two errors. Tim Tarr, Monroe Hornak and Maxton Mercadante each walked. Hornak came around to score the only run for Back Mountain in the bottom of the fourth inning after it was behind, 6-0. The Back Mountain run came when Hornak scored on the front end of a double steal when the Back Mountain runner attempting to steal second was thrown out.
After suffering a loss to Green Ridge in the Section 5 tournament, Back Mountain fought its way back through the elimination bracket to win the championship. That was a five-day event. To win another title, Brodginski said his team will have to make it a seven-day tournament.
“This is where this team has the ability to strive,” Brodginski said. “Now we know what our job ahead of us is. We started to come alive in the later innings. We took the hard road in the Section 5 tournament. We understand from here it is win or go home every day.”
Back Mountain returns to action Friday at 1 p.m. against Southern Lehigh, which lost to Selinsgrove, 7-3. Other teams in the tournament include DuBois, Hollidaysburg, Glenmore Eagle and Council Rock Newtown Area.